The Problem:
Have your seen this email?

“I received a telephone call last evening from an individual identifying himself as an AT&T Service technician who was conducting a test on telephone lines. He stated that to complete the test I should touch nine(9), zero(0), the pound sign (#), and then hang up.

Luckily, I was suspicious and refused.

Upon contacting the telephone company, I was informed that by pushing 90#, you give the requesting individual full access to your telephone line, which enables them to place long distance calls billed to your home phone number.

I was further informed that this scam has been originating from many local jails/prisons I have also verified this information with UCB Telecom,Pacific Bell, MCI, Bell Atlantic and GTE. Please beware.

DO NOT press 90# for ANYONE.

The GTE Security Department requested that I share this information with EVERYONE I KNOW.

After checking with Verizon they said it was true, so do not dial (9),zero(0), the pound sign # and hang up for anyone.

PLEASE HIT THAT FORWARD BUTTON AND PASS THIS ON TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW.”

Is it true? By pushing 90# on my landline, am I really relinquishing access to my phone?

The Solution:
Hacking, cracking, freaking, phishing, spoofing…. There’s so much to worry about these days when using the internet it’s surprising we hop online at all!

Fortunately, it doesn’t take much to be relatively safe. Of course, you’ll need to safeguard your computer with the usual prescription: firewall, antivirus solution, antispyware solution, updates, etc. When it comes to questionable e-mails like the one above, you will also need a good dose of skepticism.

The internet is full of lies. Just take a look at some of the stuff making it into your inbox. A lot simply aren’t true.

When you see something that seems a little over the top, take a moment and check its validity before forwarding it to your friends and family. A good place to start is TruthOrFiction.com, where you can check out everything from urban legends to pleas for help. To see what they have to say about the above email, go to their website and search on ‘90#’. (You didn’t think I will divulge the answer here, did you?!)

Other useful sites for questionable e-mails are:

HoaxBusters
Snopes
Break the Chain

All of them make for great reading. Enjoy!